head to head
vs
Hearts of Iron IIvsMight & Magic: Heroes VI
Hearts of Iron II leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Might & Magic: Heroes VI leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Hearts of Iron IIMight & Magic: Heroes VI
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 1
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads3 vs 3
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance3 vs 4
Might & Magic: Heroes VI leans harder on variance: combat rolls and map resources random
Optimization9 vs 8
Hearts of Iron II leans harder on optimization: Production, research and front planning are deeply solvable systems
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.